Dodgers Aren’t Enjoying This

The standings aren’t appreciably different, but for the Giants, the division title is now officially in play. And that’s not a writer’s opinion. You can bet that comes straight from the Dodgers’ clubhouse.

If the Dodgers caught any of the Giants-Phillies series on television, they watched two back-of-the-rotation starters, Jonathan Sanchez and Brad Penny, throw masterful games against the defending world champions in a bandbox ballpark. Penny’s performance was downright mind-blowing last night, and while no one expects him to throw eight shutout innings every time out, there’s no puzzle about his fastball (96-97 mph at its best last night), his curveball or his competitive nature.

Watching Penny last night, I got the same feeling I had when Jason Schmidt made his debut in a Giants uniform. Just in from Pittsburgh, Schmidt took the mound with shockingly good stuff. In an instant, the acquisition looked highly promising. And this is the reality facing the Dodgers right now: Their rotation is so tattered, they have to be wondering if they can hold off the Giants, as well as Colorado, down the stretch.

As we speak, the Giants have five guys pitching like aces. They wouldn’t hesitate to start any of them in a make-or-break game (although Tim Lincecum, who goes tonight, would be the obvious preference). The Dodgers? Well, they have no aces. Nothing even close. Chad Billingsley had that role for a while, and he was looking the part, but when the Diamondbacks roughed him up for a four-run, six-hit inning last night, it meant Billingsley’s 11th loss in his last 14 starts, with a 5.24 ERA. Billingsley didn’t pitch all that badly, especially early (retiring the first 12 hitters), but he did give up a two-run homer to Brandon Allen.

Whoever takes the mound for the Dodgers these days — Billingsley, Randy Wolf, Clayton Kershaw, Vicente Padilla, Jon Garland, knuckleballer Charlie Haeger — you’re not looking at an ace. More like a prayer. Any time Wolf (9-6, 3.25) becomes your mainstay, you’re in serious trouble.

Meanwhile, in Colorado last night, Jason Giambi brought down the house. He was a smash hit from the moment he arrived in the Rockies’ clubhouse, especially after Todd Helton, who knew Giambi from trips to Japan together with touring U.S. teams, told him to be himself, speak up, bring that infectious energy into the mix. So they were all on the top step of the dugout when Giambi, wearing No. 23, came up as a pinch-hitter against the Mets’ Brian Stokes.

Giambi had faced Stokes before, going 2-for-3 against him when he played for Tampa Bay, and the man didn’t waste any time — solid, two-run single to center, what turned out to be the game-winning hit. “I’ve seen him do that too many times,” said the Mets’ Gary Sheffield, a teammate of Giambi’s on the Yankees of 2004-06. “He’s a professional hitter. He doesn’t panic in those situations.”

One downer for Colorado: Huston Street wasn’t able to close out the game. Warming up in preparation for the ninth, he felt some serious pain and was “shut down,” as the Rockies termed it, for an indefinite period with biceps tendinitis. Lefty Franklin Morales, who has lights-out stuff, was able to get a comfortable save with a three-run lead. Whether he can adequately replace Street for a week, maybe longer, remains in doubt.

3-DOTTING: Trivia question: Out of all active players who have not appeared in the postseason, who has the most hits? Answer below . . . New York Times writer Jack Curry was in Philadelphia last night to interview Lincecum. A passage from his story: “After devouring a cheese steak with as much gooey cheese as possible and kicking a Hacky Sack around the trainer’s room, Lincecum humbly discussed his value to the Giants.” . . . Those were three big outs recorded by Jeremy Affeldt in the ninth inning. With a four-run lead, you don’t want to screw around and have Bruce Bochy turn to Sergio Romo or Brian Wilson. Now they’re fresh behind Lincecum tonight . . . The Rockies got another strong start from Ubaldo Jimenez, who admirably dueled Lincecum twice last month. “You’re looking at a future Cy Young winner,” said Giambi. “Overpowering fastball, great stuff, great mound presence. He’s definitely one of those guys who has the potential to be phenomenal in this league. The ball just explodes out of his hand.” . . . There’s a lot going on beneath the surface of the Cardinals’ impressive run. Troy Glaus, a forgotten man due to injuries and steroid-related issues, is among their September call-ups and really has no place to play (he struck out as a pinch-hitter last night in his first appearance). Khalil Greene, in and out of the picture all season due to his well-publicized anxiety disorder, is back on the big-league roster. Matt Holliday seems to have found a permanent home in St. Louis (there isn’t a better baseball town in America, and it’s perfect for him), but sources wonder if there’s enough money in that market to re-sign Albert Pujols and keep Holliday from becoming a free agent. It would place a tremendous burden on the Cardinals’ long-term payroll, a serious issue given the team’s desire to keep Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright. Finally, there’s pitching coach Dave Duncan, who would seem to have the perfect job — working for Tony La Russa, in that town, with a spotless track record — but in fact has grumbled about leaving. Duncan is extremely bitter over the fan and media treatment of his son, Chris, who was slumping badly when the Cardinals traded him to the Red Sox (sources claim that whatever dad might say, it was best for Chris to get out of a pressure-cooker situation). A larger issue, perhaps, is that according to a number of sources, the Cardinals’ minor-league people no longer seek Duncan’s input as to the training of young prospects. What? How could Duncan not be in complete charge of the team’s system-wide philosophy? In any case, Duncan’s conspicuous displeasure is an unsettling sidelight to the stretch drive . . . From espn.com’s Buster Olney: “Buster Posey was promoted to the big leagues on Wednesday, and we, in the fraternity, are oddly proud of this. Most Busters I know are dogs or cats or some other domestic pet, so it’s good to have one of us back in the majors.” . . . Also from Olney: “I took Mr. Posey in a keeper fantasy league back in February, probably a year too early, because I couldn’t imagine the regret over not picking him for the next 15 years.” . . . Answer to trivia question: Randy Winn.

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No Dodger was happier to see Jim Thome than Manny Ramirez, his teammate for many years in Cleveland. This will hurt if you’re an Indians fan, with the team currently in starvation mode, but check out the first seven hitters in their 1995 lineup (that’s right, Manny’s batting seventh):

Kenny Lofton, .314

Omar Vizquel, .266 but Hall of Fame-caliber defense at shortstop

Carlos Baerga, .314 with a couple of 200-hit seasons in his recent past

Albert Belle, .317 with 50 homers

Eddie Murray, .323

Jim Thome (playing third), .314 with 25 homers

Manny Ramirez, .308 with 31 homers and 107 RBIs

That was the peak of an exceptional era in Cleveland, filled with powerhouse lineups and right on time for the new Jacobs Field. The 1997 World Series team had Marquis Grissom, Matt Williams, David Justice and Sandy Alomar in the lineup with Vizquel, Thome and Ramirez (along with Bip Roberts, now part of the Comcast broadcasting crew, as the leadoff man and left fielder), but for sheer production, ’95 was the year. It’s just a shame that Jose Mesa coughed up that ’97 Series in Miami, an act for which he has not been forgiven. The Indians deserved at least one world title out of the 1990s.